A Day of Practicing Praise

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This is a brief outline of what a day in the life of a Practicing Praise member is like.

It starts first thing in the morning by reminding ourselves of how we are going to face the day ("Daily Confirmations") and what we will be on the lookout for ("Acts"). These are very important steps because it is quite easy to go about your day forgetting that you are focused on Practicing Praise!

These are suggestions and you may wish to personalize them for yourself. The objective here is to "set the mood" for the day in Praise. It is way too easy to rush to do all our "stuff" and forget important things like Practicing Praise! It might be helpful to write these down in your planner, journal or a sticky note somewhere you will notice every morning.

• I am so grateful for all that I have been given.
• I appreciate those around me who do so much.
• I seek out the "unsung heroes" in my world to lift them up.
• I look for the good in my day, and then take action to recognize and appreciate the people that make it happen.
• I know I can do more to help those who are less fortunate.
• I love the concept of anonymous praise, because I am doing this not for me, but to simply love one another.
• I enjoy being creative in sending thanks and praise through cards with pictures that will bring smiles in ways words won't.

While everyone is different, a great way to establish your Practicing Praise daily practice is by seeking out something we call "anonymous praise". This is the daily search to catch people doing good things to help you or others that are worthy of praise. It could be a great server at a restaurant, a positive encounter with a caring retail sales clerk, a flight attendant that goes out of their way in service, a park that has a beautiful display of flowers...the list goes on and on when you look for these moments! (Check out "99 Acts of Praise" on the home page). 

Once you discover someone you want to praise, take a photo of them, the food, the store sign or the location with the intention of putting it on a card of praise along with your words of praise and gratitude. Then you find the correct physical address and send it to them via one of the online/app photo card services or by printing out the pictures and including them in a handwritten card. The online/app is super easy and convenient, but you pay for that feature. The one that we currently use is called Touchnote and you can find details at: https://touchnote.com They do it by "credits" and to send a greeting card with photos it is roughly $3 per card which includes printing, postage and mailing. You can have your prints from your phone printed at a CVS (or other drugstores) for about $0.39 each and you can buy bulk blank cards. A first class stamp is currently $0.60. You can buy blank inside greeting cards with envelopes for $0.30 each (by the 100) via Amazon....so you can "do it yourself" for about $1.50. 

• Take time out to recognize and appreciate someone personally.
• Volunteer - each event/outing would = an act.
• Become a chef for Lasagna Love - each meal would = an act.
• Let the person in front of you in.
• Bring someone coffee.
• Ask how someone is doing and genuinely listen and care.
• Remember birthdays.
• Hold the door for someone else.
• Send/bring someone flowers.
• Make a donation.
• Buy lemonade from the kid on the corner.
• Reach out to a co-worker who made a great presentation.
• Call a friend who is recovering from illness.

Try to keep a daily log of the acts of praise you do - in your planner, journal or maybe just a sticky note. If you are enrolled in the Million Acts of Praise Challenge, you will receive a daily e-mail where you can "check-in" and share how many acts of praise you completed in the previous day and provide feedback to help us get better.